This coffee from the Palmyra estate is a naturally well balanced coffee with the delicate cherry like acidity balancing out the subtle caramel sweetness.  The coffee has a toasted almond nutty aroma on grinding and the subtle sweet flavours of chocolate and hazelnut.  

Grown in the Boquete region on the slopes of the Baru Volcano, Hacienda La Esmeralda is one of the most famous coffee farms in the world.  Purchased in 1967 by a Swedish born Californian, Rudolph Peterson had the idea that he'd retire there (he was president of the Bank of America) but he then became Director of development for the United Nations and was unable to visit his farm as often as he'd like.  From 1973, the farm was managed by Rudolph's son, Price.  Price Peterson had moved there earlier and become more involved with the running of the farm and in 1987 large areas of the farm was planted with coffee trees.  They also installed a coffee processing plant on the estate too.

In 1996, the Peterson family purchased another farm in the area where they inherited the Esmeralda Special Geisha trees which were a rare discovery in the coffee world.  These trees had not been damaged by leaf rust and in the years that followed, they won the Best of Panama competition several times.  The Peterson family now have the reputation as one of the world's best coffee producers.  The coffee commands a higher price not only because of the high quality coffee produced but Panama also has good labour laws in place which means the coffee pickers are paid a decent wage for their work.  

The farm is also Rainforest Alliance certified which attests to Hacienda Esmeralda's sustainable farming practices. Using coffee by-products as fertiliser, eco friendly use of water, using hydro electricity and woodburning to run the coffee mill and also bird friendly timing of pruning the coffee trees.

The Boquete region is probably the most famous growing region in Panama and enjoys an almost ideal climate for coffee growing with cool weather and misty rain which means the coffee cherries mature slowly allowing them to develop their distinct flavours over time.  The weather in the Boquete region perhaps mimics that of higher altitude coffee farms.